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Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Wine & Dine 5th Anniversary

I began talking about Disney’s Wine & Dine Half Marathon last year with friends and knew I wanted to run the 5th Anniversary of this race. I ran the Inaugural race back in 2010, so the 5th Anniversary seemed fitting!

I absolutely cannot wait! I am interested to see the changes that were made to this race since the first year – mainly the finish line party.

Last time I ran this race, I had a 101 fever and was blowing my nose at least every mile. It was also really hot and humid (the race was in early October). I’m going to take extra precautions leading up to this race! Definitely don’t want to get sick again!

Here’s my question to runners who run W&D in the past:

Two friends who have never been to WDW are joining us for this race. We want to spend an evening walking through the F&W Festival in Epcot. I remember the MADNESS of World Showcase area in 2010 after the race – lines were forever long for everything. Should we purchase party tickets for our guys to join us after the race and walk through the F&W festival then, OR should we plan on F&W for a different night? The only problem with planning for a different night is we will have limited time/days at Disney (3 total including one race day). Does anyone feel as if the after party crowds have improved now that rides are open (no rides were open the first year)? Thanks for any feedback!

Interested to hear more about the Inaugural year? Check out these recaps – here and here.

Who else is running the Wine & Dine Half? If you haven’t registered yet, don’t worry – registration is still open…but hurry! It’s filling up fast!

My husband and I are doing the 5K and half, and registered yesterday!! I am SO excited! I wish I could offer up some help on your dilemma, but this year will be my first Wine & Dine half experience so I have no first-hand advice! I'm sure y'all will have fun no matter what though :0)

I would do the food and wine festival on another night unless you plan to race the course and finish quickly. It would be far more enjoyable on a non race evening when you are not competing at the same time for the food booths. FYI, we ran the Wine and Dine both last year and 2012.

I ran the Wine & Dine last year. The after party wasn't bad at all. It was only about a ten minute wait for Soarin and Test Track if that gives you any inclination as to the lines. We got our photos taken with probably two dozen characters or so with no more than two or three people in line in front of us. The food/wine/beer lines weren't horrible either - I don't think we ever waited more than about five minutes for something which was fine by me.I would recommend bringing a good drawstring bag or something inside of your runDisney bag you check so that you have a way to easily carry around your race stuff. I also was VERY thankful to have my flip flops to change into after a race (I hate wearing sweaty socks longer than I have to). If you have any questions, seriously shoot me an email or don't be afraid to ask. We had a great time at the Wine and Dine last year!

I personally think the after-party is well worth the $$! The crowds are so much better than during the day. The only down side is even though the kiosks are open, alot of the restaurants are not. But if noshing your way around the Lagoon is good enough for you and your friends, you won't be disappointed!

I didn't think the crowds were as bad last year...however I don't think that the after party is worth $79 or whatever they're charging now. That's almost a full day's park ticket!! Insane. It might be worth it if you do all of the rides that are open but we usually hobble around, grab some snacks, some beer, and park ourselves in a corner for a little bit. At most we got on 2 rides or so. Then again your friends will have entire access to the party while you guys are running so they would get more use out of it than the runners would!

This is exciting news! Since we went to Wine n Dine weekend last year, we decided to go to TOT weekend this year. Now i'm wondering if we made the right decision. It would be neat to experience the 5th anniversary! I can say that world showcase was quite crowded the night of the race. We also did the "Pre Race taste" and I honestly don't think I would do that again. Save your money!

Jealous that you get to run the WDW races so often. However, I'm also excited for you to get to run in this race that looks like so much fun. One year, I'll have to make it out for this race. That's just not this year. Instead, I'm planning on running the weekend after Wine and Dine at Disneyland in the Inaugural Avengers Super Heroes Half Marathon.

I agree with the ones who say to experience Food & Wine Festival a different night. Night races are funky and I never felt like eating after either of the ones I've run. Last year, I also found that World Showcase was insanity after the race (and quite honestly, a drunken mess), so we didn't stick around too long.

I am SO excited for you to run it again! By far one of my favorites :)

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Hi! Welcome to Just Me & My Running Shoes! My name is Karen, I am a 30 year old runner, Disney lover, & Oncology Nurse. I am passionate about volunteering, fitness, traveling, and living an overall healthy lifestyle. Want to contact me? I can be reached at:kren2700@gmail.com.Have a fabulous day and thanks for stopping by!